Call to End Shipowners’ “Hide and Seek” Tactics
From Our Correspondent, Chattogram
A major shift may be coming in Europe’s ship recycling industry, as pressure grows to close legal loopholes that allow shipowners to send toxic vessels to unsafe beaches abroad. Trade unions and environmental groups are demanding sweeping changes to the European Ship Recycling Regulation (EU SRR) and waste shipment laws to stop owners from dodging responsibility.
In a joint statement, IndustriAll Europe and the NGO Shipbreaking Platform said many shipowners are exploiting weaknesses in existing laws to avoid strict European environmental standards. By doing so, they send end-of-life ships containing hazardous waste to unsafe yards in South Asia. To stop this practice, they have proposed making “beneficial ownership” identification mandatory, meaning the real economic owner of a ship must be clearly known and legally accountable.
Legal Loopholes and Owners’ Tactics
Under current rules, many shipowners change a ship’s flag at the last moment or transfer ownership through intermediary companies. This allows them to escape European regulations. As a result, even if a ship leaves a European port and ends up in an unsafe recycling yard, taking legal action against the original owner becomes extremely difficult.
The organizations argue that if the true beneficial owner is brought clearly under the law, these tricks will no longer work. They say this would lead to several major changes:
A large share of European-owned ships would return to modern, approved recycling yards within Europe.
The unsafe dumping of toxic materials such as asbestos and PCBs in foreign environments would be reduced.
The Waste Shipment Regulation would become more effective in stopping illegal export of hazardous waste from the European Union.
Safety, Jobs and Economic Potential
The joint statement stresses that ship recycling is not just about waste management. It is a strategic industry. At present, although Europeans own about 35 percent of the world’s ships, only around 1 percent of these are recycled in EU-approved yards.
If legal loopholes are closed and more ships are recycled in Europe, it could strengthen the continent’s steel supply and raw material security. According to IndustriAll Europe, stronger laws would protect the environment while also creating high-quality and safe jobs for European workers.
They argue that identifying beneficial ownership is the first and most important step toward this transformation.
The Road Ahead
The European Commission is currently preparing its Industrial Maritime Strategy. Environmental and labor organizations are urging that this strategy include strict social and environmental conditions to ensure shipowners are fully accountable.
They say Europe now has a chance to end the “hide and seek” game of shipowners and build a ship recycling system that is safe, fair and responsible.
